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AgFirst is donating the "Busted Plug" fire hydrant sculpture to the city of Columbia. The company will also donate $25,000 to relocate the 40-foot piece of art currently on Taylor Street. The deal with the city for the sculpture comes as AgFirst prepares to move into its new headquarters on Main Street. Putting “Busted Plug” at the new site — the former Bank of America building — isn’t feasible, Ann-Lamar Tuten, an AgFirst spokeswoman said. “It couldn’t go with us,” she said. “We’re donating the ‘Busted Plug’ to the city so that it can be relocated to a more visible location with more room.”

So where do you guys think it should go?

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Perhaps the big triangular area of Finlay Park at Taylor and Gadsden would be a good spot. Blue Sky said on the news that ideally the water would spray out and create an arch that you could drive under. Maybe it could be an arch that you can walk or bike under once they extend the Vista greenway from Finlay Park to Elmwood Avenue.

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Uncertainty surrounds the fate of the "Tunnelvision" mural on the side of the AgFirst building. It might be obscured if the parking lot adjacent to the building is developed, or the building itself could be torn down. Hopefully that last option is a non-starter since the building is historic and would be a significant loss.

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I wish that Columbia had more public art. Here is another example of how Greenville is moving forward with interesting projects and is re-inventing itself with a larger urban vision. Here is a list of all the outdoor sculptures in Greenville:

“Annika’s Rush” – the open suitcase is designed to hold Greenville guidebooks when the convention and visitors bureau is closed.

Carillon – In the plaza by the Hampton Inn is a carillon featuring 25 bronze bells.

“Charles Townes” – A Zan Wells sculpture at the corner of Main and Camperdown honoring the inventor of the laser.

“Fabric of Hope” – Gateway arches at the beginning of Brown Street.

“Il Porcellino” – a full-sized replica of a statute in Florence, Italy in the Poinsett Plaza.

“Interval: Mountain Fall” – Phillip Whiteley’s two towering metallic spires in the corner of the Poinsett Plaza designed to portray the mountains.

“Joel Poinsett” – Zan Wells’ sculpture in front of the Poinsett Hotel honors the man who brought the first poinsettia to the U.S. from Mexico.

“Max on Main” – A Tom Durham statue of the late Greenville mayor, surrounded by storyboards that tell the story of Heller’s escape from the Holocaust and role in the revitalization of downtown Greenville.

“Mice on Main” – nine mice sculptures that can be found in a five-block stretch of Main Street between the Hyatt and the Westin Poinsett Hotel. The series was the senior project of Christ Church Episcopal student Jimmy Ryan.

“Nathaniel Greene” – A statue at the corner of Main and Broad honoring the Revolutionary War hero.

“Orbital Trio” – a John Acorn sculpture in front of the Hyatt in NOMA Square.

“The Path of Becoming” – a brick sculpture that meanders down the sidewalk on South Main just north of Falls Park across from the Peace Center.

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Thanks for posting that, Corgi. There is truly no shortage of public art in Columbia and more is being added on a consistent basis. More recently you have the 9/11 memorial sculpture by the convention center and the Hootie and the Blowfish piece in Five Points; go back a few years and you have the Boyd Plaza centerpiece fountain/sculpture. The landscaped corner lot across from First Citizens hosts temporary art works, and you have the "Before I Die" global exhibition coming to Columbia in the near future as well.